To Free the Spirit, or Free the Mind?

For those unfamiliar with the sub-species of skiing, skate skiing is a type of Nordic, or cross-country skiing wherein the heels of the ski boots are not locked onto the skis (unlike Alpine, or downhill skiing where the entire boot is clipped down). The toe is clipped in, the heel is unattached. Free.

We Nordic skiers have a credo: Free the Heel, Free the Mind. Recently I overheard a fellow skier put a slight spin on it, Free the Heel, Free the Spirit. Both sound like a good plan, right? As I pondered the alternative take on cross-country skiing’s rallying cry, it hit me: It’s free the mind. Our spirit (soul) is already free!

Granted, our spirit at times feels locked in, fearful, or broken. The reality is, the soul is always free, unperturbed. The mind misconstrues. Often. It can and does read the world as oppressive, fearful, discombobulated. But our soul (purusha) is inherently whole, and knows no sorrow. The tricky part is, the soul must look through the mind, misguided and muddled as it can be, to see what the world looks like. If we learn (better yet, remember) to free the mind, it and the soul can just ride…seamless…unblemished.

Free the Mind, Free the Soul! If you want to pry this “puzzle” a bit more, and learn more about how ever to free the mind, drop me a line. Better yet (both/and) go straight to my source, my teacher, Rod Stryker. Friend him on Facebook. There, Yogarupa offers daily “dharma pearls” that re-mind my soul everyday.